Narayanan suspects ISI’s hands in recent terror attacks

“There is no connection between the blasts in Ludhiana, Ajmer and Mecca Masjid (Hyderabad), other than the fact that the ISI’s involvement is suspected, that is the common link,” Narayanan said in an interview to The Indian Express.

Narayanan did not directly blamed Pakistan, but said that “very often” such agencies develop their own momentum and are difficult to control.

Commenting on the Ludhiana blasts, that claimed six lives and injured over 25 people on Sunday, Narayanan said there has been a “manifest attempt in Pakistan” to build up a radical Sikh environment.

“Sporadic blasts were creating sensation, but the desired effect of sustained tension was not working. We had intelligence about four to six months back that a lot of effort was going into attempts to foment militancy.

“We have tracked intelligence information, we have studied the way such attacks take place and we can read a pattern. We have also seen signs of resuscitation of militant groups in Canada, US and Germany. We had been bracing for such a move by such elements,” Narayanan added.

Stating that the intelligence establishment believed that the blasts at Mecca Masjid and Ajmer Sharif were connected to the larger jehadi network, he said, “They (terrorists) have a feeling that the Kashmir issue is not able to attract the kind of attention they would want it to. We believe that some thinking has gone in, they are looking to change their style.”

He went on to say that so far it has been “sporadic and soft” attacks, and the human grief is not exactly adding up to the big impact they would want to see.

“Our information is that they may try high profile targets in and around Kashmir and also outside the state,” he added.

He emphasised the need for “much more vigilance on ground,” saying there is no al-Qaeda on the ground in India as yet, “but we have to be wary of random groups and individuals for various reasons.”

“We need many more eyes and ears on the ground,” Narayanan told the daily.

Asked about the harassment caused to the minority community in areas where such incidents take place when security forces carry out their investigations, he admitted that it was “unfortunate” if people of Muslim community felt they were being “targeted unfairly” whenever a terror incident took place.

“Often when such incidents take place in a Muslim majority area, like in the mosque in Hyderabad, the investigative agency’s drill is to round up people in the vicinity for questioning. Perceptions get formed that there is some kind of profiling on. Often monitoring and evaluating information takes time, and the minority community can sometimes feel victimised,” he said. (ANI)